Free Speech?
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Free Speech is a right correctly valued by any society that can claim to be civilised. However lately we are seeing amazing attempts to stifle that right in the United States.
Every child growing up in a free country learns early on that Free Speech is a right guaranteed by law and custom. It’s something to which most people hardly pay attention on a day-to-day basis. Those who live in places where free speech is a dangerous thing admire and envy those who get to have their say.
Lately, however, the right to Free Speech in the US seems to be something that only some people get to have. Anyone who disagrees with those people gets shouted down and others aren’t even given the opportunity to listen in the first place.
First there is the artificial anger over Health Care Reform. The very carefully orchestrated hysteria over the topic in public meetings makes it impossible for any serious dialogue to take place. It’s often called ‘grass roots anger’ by the Conservative elitists who have been stirring it up. But we all know that grass also starts to rot at the roots and that’s hardly useful either.
Then the uproar over the President’s recent speech to young students. It was intended to encourage children to stay in school and get a decent education. What a horrible and shocking notion! Schools actually prevented their students from being allowed to hear it. In other school systems, parents were permitted to remove their children so they wouldn’t get ‘indoctrinated’.
It’s laughable beyond belief. The parents came up with all sorts of lame excuses, such as they didn’t want their children to hear something which the adults hadn’t vetted. Amazingly enough, their children hear things all day long their parents don’t check out first. They hear them in the classroom, in the playground, on TV, while playing computer games and in Sunday School. But of course none of that could possibly be considered ‘indoctrination,’ could it? Yet listening to a freely-elected President, whose position (regardless of political party) is often known as ‘Leader of the Free World’, somehow is.
Then the ultimate episode. During the President’s speech laying out what Health Care Reform is genuinely meant to be, South Carolina Republican Representative Joe Wilson shouted, “You lie!” We’ve certainly come to expect such boorish ignorant behaviour from shrill, shrewish blonde social/ political commentators or self-confessed drug addict radio talk show hosts. Those people are great for a laugh and provide endless amusement but they aren’t elected officials.
That utter lack of respect is unbelievable! Even his own party pressured him to apologise, which he did. Not that it matters. That childish outburst was broadcast internationally and will forever live on the Internet to haunt him. Fortunately for Mr Wilson, he is entitled to his share of Free Speech. In another society or another time, he and his family would have been gathered up at midnight and exiled somewhere really unpleasant.
So it’s back to business as usual. Disagree with someone? Shout them down, call them a liar or label anything they say as ‘indoctrination’. That’s Free Speech. Have an intelligent debate with them? Free Speech? Not for some, apparently.
4 Comments
I strongly agree that Free Speech is critical in a civil society. http://webupon.com/e-mail/freedom-of-expression-vs-spam/
I question your sense of what is right here. Your inability to use spellcheck before submitting your article bespeaks of carelessness and liberal behavior. The so called “hysteria” over health care was based on written material that was submitted for approval by the Democratic party. For those who would be directly affected by passage of such a bill, it would be sad if they did not speak out. Regarding the speech to the children, you have avoided mentioning the video that was played in school the week before which asked children how they coule “serve” their president. It is realistic to refer to that video as being similar to the propaganda that was fed to the Hitler Youth. History does repeat itself. Regarding the comment heard around the world as the President was speaking, it is past, the President forgave the Senator, and just as a matter of fact, it was found that the President, was, in fact, lying. Overall your article lacks consistency as you stream from one subject to the next, assuming that you are above others in determining what is right. Get focused, write on one subject or another, and please learn where your spellcheck button is.
ROTFL! The second comment contains at least one spelling error, yet the person who wrote it tells the author to ‘please learn where your spellcheck button is.’ Didn’t know computers had spellcheck buttons. Mine doesn’t
But it’s the usual Right wing rhetoric and criticizes without offering any solution.
Hadn’t realized that serving the country falls under the shadow of ‘indoctrination’. Says a lot about the way society is going.
Great article though and there don’t seem to be any spelling errors in it. The spelling used is a correct alternative but the second commentor apparently doesn’t know the difference.
GeorgieGirl is right about the ’spelling error’. The author is probably English and is certainly using that country’s mode of spelling. What an odd thing to focus on. It seems userpeg wants to make this personal for some reason.